Georgia Struggles to Redirect Wine Exports

Almost six months after Russia imposed a ban on Georgian wine imports, the country's vintners continue to struggle to carve out new markets. Georgian officials have high hopes that American consumers can pick up some of the slack created by the Russian embargo, but marketing experts say it will take time to build global brand recognition.

Russia imposed the wine ban in March, amid intense feuding between Moscow and Tbilisi over a variety of political topics, including the ongoing presence of Russian peacekeeping forces in the separatist territory of South Ossetia. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive]. Moscow justified the ban by claiming a high percentage of Georgian wine entering Russia did not meet health standards.

Georgia officials insisted that the ban was politically motivated, designed to punish Tbilisi for pursuing policies running counter to Russia's geopolitical interests. Wine importers in the United States who already work with Georgian wines, and who are aware of the political conditions in the Caucasus country, tend to agree with that assessment.

"Of course the ban was political.